Xbox dev kits have now also received a major price hike

2025 has been the year for price hikes, with Xbox in particular increasing the cost of its consoles multiple times, its accessories and most recently Xbox Game Pass. It seems consumers aren’t the only ones being impacted however, with Microsoft having now raised the price for its Xbox dev kits by 33%.

As reported by industry insider Tom Warren (via The Verge), Microsoft recently informed developers that the company’s Xbox dev kits have gone up in price – increasing from $1500 a unit to $2000 (a 33% hike).

As with pretty much all other recent adjustments, this new price is said to be as a result of “macroeconomic developments” – though Microsoft made sure to note that “we remain committed to providing high-quality tools and support for your development efforts.”

While $2000 may not be much in the grand scheme of things when it comes to game development, raising the price on dev kits for a platform which has been struggling for years is a curious choice, especially with various 3rd-party titles having already skipped Xbox in favour of other systems.

That said (though not applicable to all), Microsoft’s indie-focused ID@Xbox program does offer some dev kits for free, meaning the price increase hopefully should not affect everyone. Still, this comes at an odd time for Microsoft – and adds further fuel to the fire regarding the console maker’s negative public sentiment.

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KitGuru says: What do you think of this recent price hike? Is Microsoft trying to get out of the hardware market? Let us know your thoughts down below.

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